We’ve seen it before, but it’s worth a repeat warning.
Beware of contractors who are unlicensed and/or misrepresent themselves as
professionals in their field. Case in point, recently a new homeowner purchased
a home and was outside viewing her property with Don when a man stopped by and
claimed to have been the previous owner’s landscaper. He appeared to know a lot
about the property, sprinkler systems, etc. and offered his services to her in
checking all the systems and cleaning up what had been neglected for so long.
Red Flag #1: When asked for a business card he casually
said he didn’t have one on him at the moment. So, there was no way to check his
license legitimacy since there was not a number to look up. See Oregon State
Contactors and/or Landscape Contractors Board to confirm an active license.
Red Flag #2: He was driving an unmarked vehicle with no visual
business representation. He didn’t even have landscaping equipment in his
vehicle.
Red Flag #3: He asked for $500 up front to start the
project, with no paperwork and no receipt.
As a consumer, do your due diligence in checking up on
these scam artists who will gladly take your money without doing the work.
